Your daily look at this day in country history, from classic Opry nights to the newest No. 1 hits.
On December 9, 2005, the cowboy film Brokeback Mountain opened in a small number of U.S. theaters. In 1995, Alan Jackson hit No. 1 on the Billboard country singles chart with his take on "Tall, Tall Trees." David Kersh and Billy Edd Wheeler share this birthday.
The cowboy film Brokeback Mountain opened in a small number of U.S. theaters. Roger Miller's "King of the Road" and Tammy Wynette's "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" were heard in the movie, and the soundtrack album had songs from Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, Steve Earle and Linda Ronstadt.
Billy Edd Wheeler was born in Boone County, West Virginia. He wrote "Jackson" and Kenny Rogers' hit "Coward of the County." He died in 2024 at 91.
David Houston was born in Bossier City, Louisiana. He scored seven No. 1 country hits, led by "Almost Persuaded," and also topped the chart with "Baby, Baby (I Know You're a Lady)."
Sylvia Jane Kirby, known to fans simply as Sylvia, was born in Kokomo, Indiana. Her 1982 song "Nobody" went to No. 1 on the country chart and also crossed over to the pop Top 20.
David Kersh was born in Humble, Texas. He started his country career in 1996, and his No. 3 hit "Another You" came from the pen of Brad Paisley before Paisley was a star.
Alan Jackson hit No. 1 on the Billboard country singles chart with his take on "Tall, Tall Trees." It held the top spot for two weeks.
Taylor Swift held the No. 1 spot on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart with "All Too Well (Taylor's Version)." The re-recorded song, including a 10-minute version, came out on Red (Taylor's Version) in November 2021.
Merle Haggard cut "Hungry Eyes" in the studio. The song led off his 1969 album A Portrait of Merle Haggard and became a No. 1 country hit, one of the best-loved songs he ever made.
Fiddle great Tommy Jackson died in Nashville at 53. He played on a huge number of country records over three decades, including many of Hank Williams' classic sides like "Lovesick Blues."
Billy Edd Wheeler (1932), David Houston (1935) and David Kersh (1970) were all born on this date.
It depends on the year. In 1995, Alan Jackson hit No. 1 on the Billboard country singles chart with his take on "Tall, Tall Trees." In 2021, Taylor Swift held the No. 1 spot on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart with "All Too Well (Taylor's Version)."
Every entry is checked by the Country Thang Daily editors. Spot something we got wrong? Let us know and we’ll fix it and note the change.